PAULSIMON

In The Blue Light Well this is rather better news and far better fare for Simon fans, the man himself reinterpreting 10 of his more “overlooked” or “almost right” compositions for a new album which supports also his current farewell tour, and perhaps rushes to correct the appalling Gracelands remixes release (left). On one level this concept is counter-intuitive—if the originals are not known, how will people appreciate the reworking? On the other hand, fans that have followed him through the dips may not think them obscure at all. Can’t Run But, the first of two songs recorded with New York chamber sextet yMusic (who also accompany him on tour) is a clear highlight, and Simon might have filled an album with these dramatically effective settings, as Peter Gabriel did with his orchestral album ‘New Blood’. But Simon calculates well by instead varying the approaches and the pace, working with looooong- time producer Roy Halle and a top-notch cast including Steve Gadd, Winton Marsalis, and Jack deJohnett, who drums (we think) on How The Heart Approaches What It Yearns and Some Folks’ Lives Roll Easy, both of which are perhaps over-’jazzed’, obscuring the songs as much as ornamenting them, but the New Orleans shuffle take on Pigs, Sheep and Wolves (originally from 2000’s ‘You’re The One’) is a real blast, giving this ‘the wolf is innocent’ tale a timely political rocket up its delivery chute. Closing here is Questions for the Angels— which must have been an “almost right” song first time around, because it’s divinely perfect here.